Well here we are, 2022 is over and 2023 has arrived. Hopefully all of you had a wonderful time over Christmas and New Year, wherever you are and whatever you’re doing! It’s at this time that I usually take a look back at the various developments that have occurred in this crazy hobby of ours, contrast them with my own efforts on various projects and generally take the opportunity to hold forth about whatever takes my fancy, to the (possible) delight of my readers. This year however that’s not going to be happening – try to contain your disappointment! Instead I’m going to be taking a final look back at the progress I’ve made on a project I’ve been focused on throughout the past year – namely trying to clear out my backlog.
First though, let’s talk a bit about how we got here. Like the vast majority of people who enjoy this hobby, I’ve built up quite a collection of unpainted models. The leadpile. The grey tide. The shelf of shame. The mountain of madness. Essentially it’s all stuff I was really excited about, but then never got around to actually getting painted before something distracted me. Attempting to get this amorphous mass under control isn’t a new thing, indeed it’s been a battle that has dominated my hobby time for many years, but in early 2022 I found myself giving it a lot of thought and changing my approach and attitude. Back in June, when I wrote about this I said the following, which I think still neatly sums things up.
Over the years my approach to the hobby has very much been a case of “this is for fun, paint whatever appeals in the moment, follow the hobby butterfly wherever it leads”. This has given me a lot of pleasure and has seen me paint a lot of models but whenever I look back at everything I’ve done I’m struck by the things I’ve still never finished and the models which I’ve been going to tackle “soon” for a very long time… In the past I’ve tended to view the backlog as a single entity which could be wrestled into completion through a combination of time and Herculean effort. All my projects would be completed as a side effect of this (that is to say, if all the models I want to paint are contained within the pile then by painting everything in the pile I automatically complete all of my projects).
Like I say, this approach gave me a lot of pleasure, and I ended up with lots of models I was really happy with, but at the same time I found that no matter how many models I painted there were still lots and lots of projects that weren’t even touched.
Before I go any further I should define some terms, albeit loosely. A model is a miniature – be that a Blood Bowl playing snotling, a Karstark spearman, an Ork buggy or a greater daemon of chaos. A “project” in my mind is rather more loosely defined. Usually it’s a collection of models; a Blood Bowl team, a Warcry warband, a Necromunda gang. Sometimes it might just be a single model – Magnus the Red is a project in and of himself. “Completed” is probably the loosest term of all, but generally what I mean here is painted to a stage where I’m calling it done, at least for now. For example I would call my Orc Kruelboys for Warcry completed, because we’ve got enough to play some games with them – even though there’s some more that I still want to paint just waiting for attention. Here’s a picture of some of them which I painted in September here to break up what is otherwise turning into a real wall of text.
I’m pleased to say that my efforts to clear out the backlog have paid dividends as well. Between January and November I completed 348 miniatures, putting me well on track for painting a model a day (something I once regarded as an unachievable dream). In the last month I painted nothing at all, but I also moved house and became a father. Right now I’m much, much more interested in spending time with the tiny, wonderful, sleep-depriving, fascinating human being that my wife and I have created than I am in painting Orks (and you know that’s high praise coming from me!).
Of course I’m not going to stop painting miniatures. Fatherhood is awesome but it doesn’t mean I need to give up being me, just that I need to reappraise some things and think about how I’m using my time. Knowing this I found myself looking at my backlog and realizing that there are a lot of unfinished projects – and if I want to finish them I’m going to need to make some changes. I’ve tried to structure my approach and focus my efforts, looking for “easy wins” and projects that were already close to being completed. I’ve taught myself to be less perfectionist in my painting – I’ve never sought Golden Daemon wins or that kind of thing anyway – but sometimes “good enough” really is good enough, I don’t need to push myself with every model. Similarly a colour scheme may be a bit of a cliche, and similar to what everyone else is doing, but if it looks cool and its easy to replicate why not just go with it – it looks a hell of a lot better than grey plastic. Conversions are cool but am I cutting this model up just because that’s my “thing” – maybe it was fine to begin with. Some people have suggested that I’ve moved from “Convert or Die” to “Stop converting everything or you’ll won’t get half of this done before you die” and they may have a point…
The other thing I’ve been doing is writing these round up posts, one at the end of each quarter, in which I take a look back at everything I’ve managed to complete for a number of broad goals. This time I’ve not managed loads but I think between the new baby, moving house and giving over October entirely to trying (and failing) to thrash fellow blogger IRO at an Ork painting contest, I can be excused for letting a few things slip. However as well as looking at everything I’ve finished over the last three months I’ll also be talking about the progress I made over the entire year – meaning this post is going to be even more long and waffly than it is already. Are you still awake and reading? Excellent – then let us begin!
Warcry
A bit of a mixed bag here – in some ways I’ve succeed far above and beyond my expectations, in other ways I’ve rather missed the mark. Let me explain; one of my key aims for the year was to paint up some more of the “core” Warcry warbands – the ones designed specifically for the game rather than ported across from the wider Age of Sigmar range. We really enjoy Warcry and round our house we play it more than any other game but the Iron Golems and Untamed Beasts have seen a lot of action and we’d like to bring out some alternatives. On this front I’ve failed entirely, despite having made a start on both the Spire Tyrants and the Khainite Shadowstalkers (not to mention assembling the Darkoath Savagers) I’ve not managed to get anything completed. On the other hand I also wanted to have a range of warbands from across the range and this I’ve managed in style; I can now offer a total of 17 different factions – from the Kruelboyz to the Nighthaunt to the Thunderstike Brethren of the Stormcast Eternals – in addition to the aforementioned Iron Golems and Untamed Beasts. Alas after powering through lots of models in the first few months of year I managed nothing at all in the final quarter. Hopefully 2023 will see me back on the right track.
Terrain
Terrain sets the scene and breathes life into the world(s) inhabited by our little painted dudes, so in my opinion a decent collection of terrain is a vital component of any wargamer’s home. Once again though I didn’t add anything here since the last update. Partly this was intentional, terrain tends to be big and awkwardly shaped (a bit like me) and much easier to move if it’s unassembled, and with a house moving looming I was happy to just leave everything in its boxes and return to it in the new year.
Earlier in the year I did much better however, first finishing off everything from the first Warcry boxset and having a little ruined town for my savage scumbos to fight over…
… and painting up a collection of walls and fences which will be particularly handy for “rank and flank” games like Warhammer or ASOIAF.
I’d really like to expand my collection of terrain for Necromunda/Warhammer 40k and I do have plenty of kits to be working with so I’ll try to make that my focus next.
Warhammer 40k and Kill Team
Not an easy one to quantify here, I’ve got a lot of projects I’d like to tackle and really I should break this down a bit further and look at specific armies (the Chaos Marines, Death Guard, Imperial Guard, Adeptus Mechanicus and so on). Honestly though I think that would lead to a lot of things being listed as “no progress” from one quarter to the next – I can only spread myself so thin after all. Still, at least this time I have something to show here, with the Orktober painting challenge leading me to add all these gits to my Ork army.
I may have been thrashed in our painting contest by that notorious freebooter IRO but I still got a lot of things done that I’d been wanting to tackle so I’m damn pleased with the result. And remember, Orks never loose – next year I’m going to come back for anuvva go!
One of the key things I painted in Orktober was Boss Snikrot, one of my all time favorite miniatures, and yet one which has been sitting unfinished on my painting desk since whenever he was released (2009 maybe?).
With the greatest Kommando of all time so fresh in my memory it was interesting to spot this silhouette appearing in Games Workshop’s recent preview of 40k models scheduled for release in 2023.
It’s hard to imagine that this could be anyone other than Snikrot, so it seems that I painted mine just in time to see him replaced by a new version of the character. That said it’s hard to imagine that the new version could be any better than the old. More interesting is the possibility that this is hinting at a return to the planet Armageddon – where Snikrot stalks the jungles – and hordes of Orks do battle with regiments of Imperial Guard (who’ll be seeing a wave of releases early in 2023) and murderous warbands of World Eaters (who’ll also be seeing a wave of releases early in 2023). Could this mean we’ll be seeing more Orks (yes please!) before the year is out, perhaps alongside more World Eaters (something that there is currently a desperate need for) and perhaps even models for the Armageddon Steel Legion (possibly my favourite Imperial Guard regiment) – or am I just getting over excited about a silhouette and putting 2 and 2 together to make 22? I guess we’ll find out in the coming months…
That aside the biggest thing I managed to tackle this year was this bunch of Necrons that I worked on back in the spring and summer. They seem to have returned to their tombs for now but I’ve got plans to wake them up again soon.
Blood Bowl
Not a lot to show this time, but despite the last few months being busy it’s not nothing either – I managed to get a team of Skaven started and even recruited enough players for a game of Blood Bowl 7s.
Orctober also saw me add Varag Ghoul Chewer to the ranks as my first star player in my collection.
Technically I started the year with zero teams completed. My Orcs and Black Orcs were both pretty much done but at the time I still hadn’t painted that damn troll and I refused to call either team finished until I’d actually got paint on the blasted thing. As a result when I set myself the challenge of attacking the backlog the troll was one of the first targets.
Since then I’ve actually managed quite a few violent sportsmen and I now have 6 full teams match ready (the Orcs, Black Orcs, Goblins, Shambling Undead, Necromantic Horrors and Underworld Denizens) plus my small team of Skaven; the Lowdown Dirty Rats. Next year I’d like to return to my neglected Snotlings, get the Skaven up to full team status and add at least two more elves to the Elven Union team so they too can play at 7s. As usual I’ve got a few more ideas up my sleeve as well – we’ll see how things go.
Necromunda
Another year comes to an end and once again I’ve not done as much with Necromunda as I set out to. Partly it’s choice overload, I’ve got so many projects I want to tackle that, despite my enthusiasm, I just can’t get around them all. In the case of Necromunda however a big part of the problem has been something I’ve come to think of as “the Orlock knot”. All too often I find my painting process when it comes to Necromunda goes a bit like this:
1. I want to paint something for Necromunda! I am full of excitement! What shall it be today!
2. So many options! I am dizzy!
3. Well… I have been saying I’d work on my Orlocks since God was a boy, best start there I guess.
4. I don’t really feel like Orlocks today though.
5. I paint something else and Necromunda is left to slumber beneath filthy, toxic skies for a while longer.
That being the case I’m really pleased to started on the Orlocks at long last.
In a perfect world I’d have done more with them but I’m not going to beat myself up over that, my enthusiasm for the House of Iron is back to where it should be and plenty more Orlock gangers will be making their way to the underhive as soon as I find the time. Those aside I managed a few hive scum earlier in the year and again I’m planning to expand their ranks in the new year. The chaos cultists I painted recently will also be inducted in my old Chaos Helots gang (or perhaps found a new one), after which I’ll be looking around for what else the underhive has to offer.
Aeronautica Imperialis/Adeptus Titanicus
I love the idea of the Titans in the 40k universe and as a result have been very drawn to the idea of assembling my own collection of clashing God Machines. For a while the price of these kits really put me off but over the years a few really appealing deals have come my way and I now have a fair old stash of them. Have I painted any of them though? No, no I have not! Nor, for that matter, have I done anything about the Aeronautica Imperialis box I picked up in a sale a year or so ago. Ah well, maybe 2023 will be a better year for them.
Blackstone Fortress
Unlike Cursed City (see below) I’ve actually done pretty well here. With the great big mob of Chaos Cultists I finished recently I have the Escalation expansion fully painted, alongside Traitor Command, Deadly Alliance and almost everything from the core box (minus a couple of characters). That just leaves me with the Dreaded Ambull and Ascension expansions still to tackle so all being well it’s entirely possible I’ll get this one in the bag soon.
Cursed City
Poor old Cursed City. Launched with such fanfare and lauded for the quality of its models it swiftly disappeared once more amid a flurry of contradictory social media posts in lieu of open, honest announcements. “It was going to be available for years”, “no it wasn’t”, “it was always supposed to be limited edition”, “we never said that, that never happened”. I guess the news media think they can get away with saying “You know that thing we said last week? Well it’s not true, we never said it and if you think you heard us say it you’re a conspiracy theorist!” and GW thought “I wonder if that would work for us”. Nah, sorry Gdubz, it doesn’t work for anyone…
In what may well be the ultimate case of nominative determinism Cursed City went from being one of the most highly anticipated games in GW’s stable to a byword for making a total arse of things. The expansions, long promised and finally delivered, were a very long way from what GW had hinted at and really only served to make people more pissed off; the kind of bonus content usually reserved for an issue of White Dwarf instead sold as extremely overpriced limited-edition content for the hardcore completionist only.
Now I tend not to care too much what GW, or any other company, are doing with the “official rules” or how well a game is being supported by its publisher. Still it’s hard to shake off the feeling that GW made a right royal balls of things here (and I’m sure there are designers up at GW HQ still quietly fuming that everything they had planned has been scrapped). It may be projection but it’s hard not to get a sense of bitterness even from the official announcements – no normal person wants to be responsible for peddling bullshit on behalf of an uncaring employer after all. They screwed up, then they lied to us, they tried to cover it up and then to rip us off, their (presumably awesome but sadly now unknowable) future content will never see the light of day and they just wish the whole nasty business would go away and us customers would just focus on the new exciting thing instead.
Against such a backdrop it’s sometimes hard to feel the enthusiasm I once did and this is reflected in the fact that I’ve still not got very much done, and nothing at all in the final quarter of the year. It’s not been a dead loss though, 2022 did see me making a start on the core of the rank-and-file baddies and getting two heroes ready for adventure.
We’ll see how things go but I’d like to rediscover my drive, complete the second half of the skeleton squad, paint a couple more heroes and then – buoyed up with newfound enthusiasm – power my way through the rest of the box in 2023.
A Song Of Ice And Fire
2022 was also the year I got into the A Song of Ice and Fire miniature’s game (that’s Game of Thrones for those of you who’re more familiar with the TV show). I actually discovered it in 2021, having been a big fan of the novels for many a long year, but didn’t get around to starting some painting until March. Being a UK based fan of the game can be a bit frustrating at times, with releases sometimes not appearing for sale here until years after they’ve reached other countries (I’m still waiting for the Lannister Red Cloaks to reach these shores for instance). The forces of House Martell have been available for a few months now, but not round here they haven’t, and so my temptation to throw my support behind the lords of Sunspear is stuck on the backburner for now. Still, given their slanderous treatment in the TV show supporters of the Dornishmen have become used to rough treatment, and if you’re not accustomed to waiting years and years for the slightest hint of a release then George Martin may not be the author for you – so perhaps those of us who are enduring the long wait for the Martells to reach the British Isles are the ones who are truly embracing the spirit of the game!
Anyway, at the moment I’ve got two projects on the go here; an army from House Stark and another from House Lannister. Of the two the Lannisters are definitely lagging behind and saw no progress at all in the final quarter of the year. Still, I’m excited about them and I like the colour scheme so I’ll try to return to them soon.
The Starks did a bit better and, with the addition of a squad of Karstark spearmen, now stand at more than 30 points (the minimum size for a game).
Of course I’m already thinking ahead to potential future projects as I explore the other factions in the game. Barbarian hordes and big monsters have always appealed to me so the draw of the Free Folk is very real, and the reaving Greyjoys have also been calling to me, as have the aforementioned Dornishmen of House Martell. In fact looking at the Martells has me wondering what other factions might be waiting to join the game in the future, and honestly despite the depth and complexity of the world described by George RR Martin the list isn’t long. House Arryn seems an obvious choice and I can’t help but wonder about the Brotherhood Without Banners or the alliance from Slaver’s Bay. However, and here I’ll need to speak carefully to avoid spoilers for those who haven’t read the books, the most obvious contender of all has to be the Golden Company lead by *cough* “Young Gryff”. Yet the Golden Company were released back in the summer as part of the Neutral faction. In some ways that befits their status as a mercenary company but hardly does justice to their role in the story so far, or their likely next moves based on the chapters from Winds of Winter that have been previewed. Watch this space I guess but if CMON don’t remove the Golden Company from the Neutral faction and turn them into a faction in their own right at some point in the future they’re missing a trick.
Hate
I’ve got no real plan or structure here, I’m just enjoying chipping away at the models (which at the end of the day is what this is all about right?). As a result I didn’t manage anything else over the last few months so here’s a look at everything I’ve managed to paint in 2022.
Goals and Summing Up
In previous round-ups I’ve talked a bit about the goals I was hoping the achieve in the months ahead. This time I’m not going to do that, and I probably won’t bother with a March 2023 round up either – my hands are just too full at the moment and setting myself targets is setting myself up for failure from the get-go. Obviously being a dad is eating up a lot of my time and energy at the moment but I’ll still be painting and I’ll still be sticking to my aims as set out above. This approach has worked really well for me in achieving a lot of these long held goals but I’ve still got plenty of ground to cover. I’m also looking at ways in which I can speed up my painting, and manage my hobby time differently, whilst still making sure I have fun with it. Of course much as I’d like to pretend that I’m just going to focus on the models I already own I’m sure I won’t be entirely depriving myself of new stuff – there are World Eaters coming soon, and more Warcry warbands and Necromunda gangers, so even in this cost of living crisis I’ll try to allow myself the odd treat. Right now though I’ve got a baby to bath, boxes to unpack and other survivors of 2022 to fight for food and fuel. Have a wonderful 2023 all!
Convert or Die 
January 3rd, 2023 at 11:18 am
Lovely round-up mate, Happy New Year to you all 🤘
January 4th, 2023 at 11:57 am
Thank you very much dude – happy New Year to you and yours too! 🙂
January 3rd, 2023 at 11:24 am
Nice collection there! I always defined my projects loosely too. Some were just a few models, others like my ‘Bones’ project, had over 200!
January 4th, 2023 at 12:48 pm
Thank you! It’s a tricky thing to define isn’t it? At first it seemed quite straightforward but the more I thought about it the more aspects to it there are. Even defining a miniature isn’t entirely simple – a grot is a miniature and so is an Imperial Knight but the two things really don’t represent an equal amount of effort! And “completed” is probably the hardest to define of all. I suppose I could have written “I’m going to paint some things until I reach a point where I stop and tell you that I’m happy before going on to paint something else, unless or until I change my mind and go back to them” – a statement which may be accurate but isn’t very helpful in conveying my meaning to anyone else! 😀
January 5th, 2023 at 2:09 am
Yes, it was the same with my goal of having all my miniatures painted. The full wording of the goal was ‘all miniatures I have owned for 6 months or more will be painted’ but that’s not as easy to communicate
January 3rd, 2023 at 11:30 am
Happy New Year to you to, a baby in the house can certainly eat up hobby time, but in time routines get more established, and new well springs of energy can be found, and you’ll wonder why you haven’t painted more ! LOL As for the house move, I find trying to find new homes for stuff can sap the strength and will power of anyone, but you’ll get there in the end.
Some interesting goals for the year, and as you say finding quick wins can really push the enthusiasm, and help kickstart motivation on other projects, so I hope it all goes to plan, and you get more wins than losses.
January 4th, 2023 at 1:02 pm
Thank you! I think in time it’ll all come together and I’ll get back to painting. There’s often an attitude that if you become a parent you have to give up on everything you were doing before and I think that’s pretty unhealthy, both for the parents and as a model for what the child sees adulthood as looking like. On the other hand I’ve never had a baby to look after before and soon enough she’ll have grown into a child and then an adult (she’s already changing every day) so if I want to enjoy bonding with her when she’s small, and really putting that early investment into her then now is the time to do it (plus I don’t think my wife would be too chuffed if I wasn’t doing my bit!). Some of my miniatures have been waiting decades for attention – they can wait a little longer! And then there’s all the times when you just need five minutes away, doing something else, when the little one is getting a feed or a nap, there’s nothing pressing to do and you can take a moment to do something completely different – and the hobby is perfect for that. 🙂
As for quick and easy wins, they’re the backbone of what I’m trying to achieve here. By their very nature they’re easy to achieve, and each one gives a real sense of enthusiasm and momentum. For me that Blood Bowl troll has to be the perfect example – I’d been promising myself (and everyone here) that I was going to paint him for at least a couple of years, probably longer, and yet I hadn’t touched him. As soon as I realised I could tick two projects off the list just by painting that one model he was on the desk and done in a matter of hours!
January 3rd, 2023 at 6:08 pm
Great round up mate and congratulations once again on becoming a dad. Babies may be little but they do take up a huge amount of time. Unfortunately the time issue goes on for the rest of your life here on in. Clearing the backlog is commendable and over the years I’ve read a great many suggestions on how to reduce it. Discipline is key of course but there are easier and quicker ways to deal with the matter. In my case I just gave heaps of stuff away and started to build a new pile. 🤗
January 5th, 2023 at 9:59 pm
Cheers! Oh those babies gobble up time like it’s going out of fashion don’t they – but they’re well worth it. 🙂 At least this way I’ll leave something more behind me than just ten million unpainted miniatures! As for clearing the backlog I think the key is; buy less and paint more and faster. Buying less is easier said than done although the rising cost of everything should help a little there (silver linings and all that right). Painting more is probably not going to happen until the little one leaves home which leaves me with painting faster. Because for the most part I’m a painter rather than a gamer I’ve never been particularly interested in speed-painting, for me it’s all about the journey, but there are games I want to play and so I’m going to roll up my sleeves and find ways to get things done quicker. As for giving stuff away I think that’s very commendable, and if I ever find anything that I no longer want (and someone who wants it) that’s exactly what’ll be happening. The trouble is I’m still enthusiastic about all of it. The passion for each project that got me to shell out my cash in the first place never goes away, I just seem to forget how many hours are in each day and before you know it I’ve added something else to the pile.
January 3rd, 2023 at 7:00 pm
A nice round up and great to see the minis again! Hope all goes well for 2023! 🙂
January 5th, 2023 at 9:59 pm
Thanks John! 🙂
January 4th, 2023 at 12:07 am
I enjoyed reading this, as I do with all your updates, mate. I couldn’t agree more with what you said on Cursed City. What a disappointment it ended up being (outside of the models themselves which are cool). It really would make me hesitant to jump into a GW game from the start until I know how good it is. Their marketing tactics really made a mess of a game even worse. There’s no doubt about that, unfortunately.
I will be curious to see how you handle fatherhood and our hobby. You have a lot of projects on the go right now and I’m sure you’ll have less hobby time than you had previously too. It might lead to some tough decisions on your backlog but I’m sure you’ll figure out a solution with enough time and perspective.
I look forward to seeing what you work on in 2023! I’m sure it will be another great year for us and our hobby! 🙂
January 16th, 2023 at 5:48 pm
Cheers! I know exactly what you mean about Cursed City, and the trouble is I don’t think they’ve learned a damn thing from it. I saw the Blackstone Fortress expansions go on sale and each one turned out to be limited edition, which meant I quickly realised that if I wanted them I needed to snap them up as soon as they were available. Then because I was in the habit of doing that, and I really wanted those models, I did the same with Cursed City – never for a moment thinking that this was going to be the only way to get a copy (I know it was back, and gone again, a couple of times after that but each time you had to jump or miss out). GW leaned into the FOMO and despite a lot of moaning from the fanbase I don’t think it hurt their bottom line at all, so there’s no reason to think they won’t keep doing it. I know they can’t keep everything on the shelves forever (apart from ugly Skaven models from 30 years ago, for some reason they’re happy to keep selling them until the end of time…) but some of these boxsets are selling out in well under an hour, only to be gone forever, and that’s just a silly way to behave. So the next time a Cursed City comes along I’m going to be torn – assuming I want it (and I can afford it) – because if I boycott it I’m only depriving myself and if I buy it I’m only encouraging them.
As for fatherhood it is without doubt the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done. Am I going to finish all the projects I’ve listed here? Nah – and I probably wasn’t even if we hadn’t had a child (I do tend to bite off more than I can chew when it comes to our hobby). However I’d far, far rather be a dad than paint miniatures, if I was forced to choose between them. The first few weeks/months are definitely a steep learning curve, and again that’s fine because the baby needs me to get things right and the miniatures will keep! However in the longer term I’ve got lots of ideas about how I can get back to painting. Which ones work, and which ones don’t, only time will tell. 🙂
January 16th, 2023 at 7:42 pm
This is all well said and I completely agree with you. GW has a huge fanbase and while they may turn some people off with FOMO, I don’t think there is really any persuasive reason for them to stop. In many cases, FOMO is bad for the consumer but good for whoever makes the product and that is the case here, I believe.
That sounds good to me and I’m glad you’re enjoying fatherhood thus far! I look forward to seeing what you’re able to accomplish and how everything goes 🙂
January 6th, 2023 at 5:45 am
Congratulations on achieving fatherhood! Looking forward to more great stuff in 2023, but also I hope you find some time to rest up and re-energize.
January 18th, 2023 at 8:44 pm
Thank you! Resting up and regenerating has been happening – albeit in small doses at the moment – and I’ve even found a few moments to sneak in some painting! 🙂
January 6th, 2023 at 8:53 am
Ahh the naivety of a new parent thinking they’ll have any time to themselves haha. Great roundup mate although it took me three separate sittings to get through it hehe. You should be very proud of what you’ve achieved this year mate and I’m super excited to see what you manage to get through in 2023. Happy New Year my friend.
PS cheers for the shoutouts 😉👍🏼
January 19th, 2023 at 10:13 am
Haha – indeed, and it’s only taken me a couple of weeks to get around to replying to your comment! Cheers for all the banter and encouragement over the past year(s!) – here’s to even more miniatures shenanigans in 2023!
January 6th, 2023 at 5:51 pm
Happy New Year- enjoy your fatherhood first and foremost- toys will always be here.
I know what you mean about Necromunda in a way- I can’t decide if it is lovingly detailed or bloated now with rules scattered all over the place.
I’ve got into Age of Sigmar recently- the rules are a refreshing change from anything 40k related.
Cheers,
Pete.
January 20th, 2023 at 11:13 am
That first sentence is very wise and captures how I’m feeling entirely. I’ve got the little one sitting next to me as I type! 🙂
Completely agree on Necromunda; I love it, but I’m not sure I’m happy about it. It’s great that they’re pouring so much effort and energy into it, and long may that continue, but at the same time its grown to the point where “bloated” hardly seems to cover it. I think in part its trying to be all things to all men; is it a snappy little skirmish game about poorly equipped gangers roughing each other up or it is an RPG in which your gang is your character, and the sky is the limit so long as you and your mates want to keep going? I think if you have a group of really hardcore fans who all know and trust each other, who have all the books and share an obsession with the setting then it’s great. Equally if you have one knowledgeable GW and a group of players who are willing to let him take the lead and decide what’s in and what’s out. It must be very overwhelming for new players though, and I can imagine there’s plenty of arguments happening over what should and shouldn’t be allowed in any given game. For myself I love the models and I love the lore and the setting, so I’m happy to just keep pursuing that. In some ways I’m lucky to be able to do my own thing with the rules so that’s something I’m going to keep chipping away at when I can.
That’s interesting about AoS, I’ve not tried to play it since the very early days, I’ve probably got enough stuff for a small game though, might give it a spin when I get the chance. Cheers!
January 6th, 2023 at 8:17 pm
[…] Progress Report – December 2022 @ Convert or Die – Convert or Die is a blog that makes me happy when I visit it. I like seeing the completed minis, and I really like reflective roundup posts like this one. It’s cool to see the really great progress made this year, or changes to attitude and approach, and of exciting changes to circumstances. Thanks for sharing! […]
January 9th, 2023 at 12:04 am
Congrats on fatherhood! And as others have said, it won’t get easier. Hopefully, you’ll do better than I did with the hobby – once fatherhood hit me in 1985 I basically was out of the hobby for the most part from 1987 until 2015! Still, I believe you’ll focus on the most important part of life, and to that, I wish you the best of luck. The minis will always be there, but every day with your kid passes so quickly.
January 20th, 2023 at 12:00 pm
Thank you! Very wise words, and exactly how I’m feeling right now – I’ve been painting miniatures for years, and I’m sure I’ll paint plenty more but I’ve never been a dad before and I’m enjoying this new experience enormously.
I’ve certainly met plenty of people who’ve had similar experiences to yours and dropped out of the hobby when their kids arrived – and at the end of the day that’s only natural, after all you have responsibilities to look after your kids. Children are only small for a little while, you need to enjoy it whilst it lasts. Of course I’m vain enough to think that this doesn’t apply to me and I can somehow sneak in some painting here and there, and still give my little one all the love and attention she needs. Will I succeed or will this prove to be hubris? I guess we’ll all find out! 😀
January 20th, 2023 at 12:45 pm
Good luck, your life will never be the same again – in the best way possible!
January 9th, 2023 at 4:14 pm
It’s really an amazing output there in terms of quantity and quality! I can’t imagine painting nearly a mini a day at that level. Even though you weren’t crazy about painting the Orlocks, they turned out really nice. Sounds like you have an easy win with only two more Elves for your Elven Union team! Happy New Year and here’s to 2023!
January 20th, 2023 at 12:05 pm
Thank you! I know, I heard other hobbyists talking about painting a model a day and I could never imagine how they did it (not including rough speed paints or people who didn’t have a job to be getting to of course). Looking at my stats for the year and discovering I’d come close to achieving it myself was a weird feeling, but something I’m rather proud of.
Aye, I think easy wins are going to be the name of the game for the next little while. In that regard having those elves just sitting there unfinished now seems like forward planning rather than laziness! Glad you like the Orlocks, getting a few more of them ready should make for another easy win sooner or later. 🙂
January 11th, 2023 at 1:57 am
First of all – wow and Congratulations to you both!
A good write-up as always, Wudu! The second, third and fourth paragraphs could be lifted directly from my own blog/experience/life.
I found that in the last year, writing up the quarterly posts helped to remind me of what my painting goals as set out in January actually were – and while I was of course happy to allow myself to diverge into whatever I was “Feeling” at the time, it was also in terms of a reminder to help me keep some semblance of focus and not completely devole into painting a decent selction of totally random and unrelated modlkes each month, as I am sometimes wont to do.
17 playable War Cry factions is bloody impressive no matter how you cut it, though! I am certainly impressed! Regardless of how many are (or aren’t) the officially-released-for-War-Cry factions! A bloody impreesive set of Orks as well – particularly for one month! In fact, back in my yoof, that would have been a nice sized Rogue Trader force in and of itself!
Those Kommandoes might be just the thing to reinvigorate my own Ork painting, but first I’ve got a bunch of Boys, a few Nobs and some Rogue Trader Orks to finish off the tray. I’m just pecking away at them from time to time, to make it easier once I direct my focus onto them!
Your Necromunda paragraph could also be lifted from my own, etc as well – I do want to finish off at least two more Blood Bowl Teams this year, and hopefully in the opening months so I can ride a bit of enthusiasm and perhaps get an additional team or two painted – and even play(!!?!) I feel like that perhapos outside of finishing some classic models that have been started isnce the 90’s and perhaps an Escher or two for Fembruary, this will be another sleeper Necromunda year for me.. Your Orlocks do look great and could easily inspire me to get started onto another project I won’t finish! – I have to say I am a little disappointed that you didn’t move to around the corner from where I live – we’d get some games in and I’d probably get a lot more GW models painted as well!
Like you, I’ve stashed a bunch of AI models as a “small-scale” game, but luckily the immense price, scale change and lack of anyone to play has kept me from buying into AT this time around. Jealous on your BSF progress! I lost the heads from the Ur-Ghuls and accidently broke off UR-025’s arm – which combined to just draining my enthusiasm for a couple of years, I’ve just repaired and finished UR-025, so maybe in 2023 I can get a few mroe of these things painted? Or it could just end up like Cursed City where I only finished one model… I did find Peachy’s YouTube video that addressed it (to the best of his knowledge) pretty interesting, though…
I’ve been pretty impressed with your ASOFAI progress! As I’ve noted, it makes me want to paint up models for Middle-Earth – and some of those Stark models for my Gondor & Armor forces, for that matter!
Your HATE stuff looks great! Very inspiraitonal but for me they mentally mix in with the AoS/WHFB Chaos stuff, particularly Bloodbound, Norscans and the old Marauders. Keep them coming and I promise I’ll finish that Bloodbound model on the painting tray in 2023! 😀
Thanks for the post – as you’re one of my absolute favourite bloggers I always enjoy reading these long posts of yours but I always want to reply to them with some depth as I have here, so all too often I instead end up not writng a comment at all – I’ll get back to that one when I have more time – right?
But yeah, reading through this post, I now want to paint Blood Bowl, that Bloodbound guy, Orks, some Escher, some Orlocks(!) and some Underworlds/War Cry models. Not exactly what I’m “supposed” to be working on right now! So again – thanks a bloody lot! 😀
January 11th, 2023 at 1:57 am
oh, and Cursed City and Blackstone Fortress models too!
February 11th, 2023 at 11:53 am
Thank you – on all counts! We’re absolutely thrilled with the little one, she’s a handful but she’s worth every moment. As for being one of your favourite bloggers that’s high praise indeed – especially as you’re one of my favourite bloggers; the AGM of the Mutual Appreciation Society will now come to order! 😀
I know what you mean about long, thoughtful posts, deserving to be read, digested and replied to properly (same with long, thoughtful comments!) – only for me to realise that it’s been six months and I never did get around to writing that considered reply I’d been planning.
I’ve been thinking about the quarterly update posts a fair bit lately. They definitely helped keep me on track last year but I did find that I was struggling a bit to find enough content at the end of each three month block. Only doing two per year, mid-summer and mid-winter, seems too few for a normal year though – although that’s likely to be exactly what I’ll end up doing in 2023. I’m thinking I might try 3 per year/one round up every four months instead, which will hopefully give me enough content to keep things interesting for the reader, and enough time to comfortably get things achieved.
Aye, 17 warcry warbands is not bad going is it? I was pretty damn chuffed when I tallied them up!
Your point about the Orks making a good Rogue Trader sized force touches on something I’ve been thinking about a lot lately (and funnily enough I saw Peachy and co discussing the same thing on one of their shows). When I was a nipper an army for 40k was a couple of squads, a hero, a vehicle and maybe something elite or fast attack if you were a bit fancy. Then as I got older and got to know people who actually understood the rules I fell under the sway of GW’s advertising department who slow-walked me into the idea that an army should be 1500 points – no make that 2000 – in fact make that more, because you want tactical options in that game you don’t actually play – and hey, Apocalypse looks cool doesn’t it so just keep sending us more money, the CEO wants to buy another yacht! My thinking at the moment is to get back to basics, rather than overwhelming myself by trying to paint thousands and thousands of points of “stuff”, start with some smaller collections and then build on them as the fancy takes me. Which is basically what I was doing anyway… After all, if I ever find myself wanting to play “proper” 40k (unlikely these days) I’ve got my Orks.
For Necromunda I think I should be able to grow the Orlocks and Hive Scum into full gangs without too much bother. After that we’ll see how it goes. Likewise with Blood Bowl I only need to paint two models to get the Elves ready to play 7s, the Snotlings are an easy win too, and I’ll play it by ear after that.
Glad you like the Hate stuff, and I completely agree that they tie in well with AoS/WHFB Chaos. I’m thinking I can use some of them in warcry, or as marauders for a little AoS Slaves to Darkness/Khorne force, and some of them would work well for some of the more savage Free Folk in ASOIAF as well. Do get that Bloodbound guy painted – if there’s just the one he sounds like an easy win to me!
Aye, it’d be no bad thing if I lived round the corner from you – in a lot of ways we’re birds of a feather when it comes to this hobby, and I might actually get some games in for a change. Plus, you’ve got the weather! 😀
January 13th, 2023 at 12:34 pm
Great round up sir to a great year, you achieved a tremendous amount there well done.
January 31st, 2023 at 9:23 am
Thank you very much indeed!
April 11th, 2023 at 8:36 pm
Im in the same boat with Cursed City, I have all the miniatures to paint but cant help but feel that maybe I should just sell them and move on, then again a Soulblight arm shares a lot o the bad guys so maybe theres that…
April 21st, 2023 at 5:40 pm
Yeah, I’m not usually one for being inspired to paint a model because I want to use it in a game, usually painting it is the aim and the source of my enjoyment, and then being able to play a game with it is a bonus at the end. However the whole Cursed City debacle has really sucked the enthusiasm right out of me for the whole project. That said now GW have moved on I’m finding myself looking at the models again with fresh eyes so we’ll see. I certainly won’t sell mine any time soon, the miniatures are just so damn cool that I’m confident I’ll come back to them sooner or later. In the meantime I’ve got plenty of other things to be getting on with! 🙂
May 12th, 2023 at 6:30 am
I still cant work out why you don’t get much done!!! F>>>> gee mate you are making me feel very inadequate, top work cobber.
May 16th, 2023 at 9:26 pm
Mate, I think you’re being far too harsh on yourself! Cheers though, no idea how I used to get so much done, I certainly don’t manage it these days 😂
May 16th, 2023 at 11:21 pm
😅👍🏻🤓